Cordless phone back link for interactive television system

ABSTRACT

A system for communicating information from a television viewer to a central site includes a remote control unit for sending command signals from the viewer to a television or video cassette recorder (VCR). Circuitry integral with the television or VCR accepts the command signals from the remote control unit and interprets the signals to form a viewer command, such as a purchase command, to be communicated to the central site. The circuitry automatically sends dual-tone multifrequency (DTMF) tone signals representing the command over a radio frequency (RF) link to a cordless telephone base unit, which is connected to the central site by a public switched telephone network. The cordless telephone base unit initiates a telephone call to the central site and communicates the DTMF tone signals received from the DTMF circuitry in the television or VCR to the central site. The television or VCR receives a television signal and extracts information related to a product or pay-per-view (PPV) event being advertised on a television program from the vertical blanking interval of the television signal. This information includes the telephone number of the central site used for making the telephone connection as well as identification information for the product or PPV event to be purchased.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.08/914,336, filed Jul. 14, 1997, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,898,919, whichclaims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/012,303, filedFeb. 26, 1996; U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/012,968, filed Mar.7, 1996; U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/027,671, filed Oct. 7,1996; and International Publication Number W097/31480, published Aug.28, 1997 PCT Application No. PCT/US97/02888, filed Feb. 26, 1997.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates generally to television and telephone systems andmore specifically to an interactive television system integrated withcordless phone circuitry to allow automatic telephonic communicationbetween the interactive television system and a central site.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

An emerging trend in the marketing of cable television and digitalsatellite systems (DSS) is to emphasize Pay-Per-View (PPV) televisionprogramming as a source of revenue. An ideal PPV television systemshould allow a viewer to purchase the right to watch a televisionprogram such as a movie, sporting event, or other special event througha minimal amount of effort on the part of the viewer. For example, afterwatching a short preview or advertisement of a PPV program, the viewercould gain access to the PPV program simply by pressing a selectedbutton on the viewer's remote control unit for a television or videocassette recorder (VCR). In another example, the viewer is watching aninformational commercial (“infomercial”) or a home shopping program andthe viewer desires to purchase an advertised product by pressing aselected button on the remote control unit. In existing televisionsystems, in order for the viewer to arrange for PPV program access, theviewer must go to the viewer's telephone, call the PPV program provider(such as the cable company) and enter his or her cable box serialnumber, credit card number and PPV program identifier. The PPV programprovider then enables the cable box to display the selected PPV programto the viewer. In the home shopping situation, the viewer must writedown the advertiser's telephone number and product identifier, go to thetelephone, call the advertiser or a home shopping service provider, andthen communicate the required credit card and product selectioninformation to an operator.

In more recent systems using digital set top boxes (such as DSS), theset top box itself is directly connected to a telephone line in theviewer's home and the remote control unit includes a button for orderinga PPV program. When the button is pushed by the viewer, the telephonenumber of the PPV program provider is automatically dialed and the boxidentifier and PPV program identifier are automatically transmitted overthe telephone connection to the PPV program provider. In this scenario,the viewer must establish a credit card account with the PPV programprovider for billing purposes prior to pushing the button to select aPPV program. A major drawback to effective operation of these systems isthe requirement that the set top box and television must be close to atelephone jack in the viewer's home, because of the direct connectionsby wire between the set top box, the television and the telephone jack.In many homes, the television is not in close proximity to a telephonejack, nor even in the same room, thereby rendering such systemsunsuitable for widespread use. An interactive television systemovercoming this drawback would have considerable value in the PPV, homeshopping, and other interactive viewing situations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A system for communicating information from a television viewer to acentral site includes a remote control unit for sending command signalsfrom the viewer to a television or video cassette recorder (VCR).Circuitry integral with the television or VCR accepts the commandsignals from the remote control unit and interprets the signals to forma viewer command, such as a purchase command, to be communicated to thecentral site. The circuitry automatically sends dual-tone multifrequency(DTMF) tone signals representing the command over a radio frequency (RF)link to a cordless telephone base unit which is connected to the centralsite by a public switched telephone network. The cordless telephone baseunit initiates a telephone call to the central site and communicates theDTMF tone signals received from the DTMF circuitry to the central site.Because of the advantages of RF communication, the television or VCRdoes not have to be in the same room as, or in close proximity to thecordless telephone base unit. The television receives a televisionsignal and extracts information related to a product being advertised ona television program from the vertical blanking interval of thetelevision signal. This information may include the telephone number ofthe central site used for making the telephone connection as well asidentification information for products. A cordless telephone handset incommunication with the cordless telephone base unit is also included toallow the television viewer or other user to make normal telephone callswith the cordless telephone.

In an embodiment of the present invention, a method of purchasing aproduct advertised on a program displayed by a television includesreception of a purchase command by a remote control unit of thetelevision, transmission of the purchase command over an infrared linkto the television, and initiation of a telephone connection by acordless telephone base unit to a central site. The purchase command isthen sent by dual-tone multifrequency signal generation circuitryresident in the television over a radio frequency link to the cordlesstelephone base unit. The cordless telephone base unit sends the purchasecommand to the central site over the telephone connection. The centralsite then processes the purchase command.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the circuitry forsending the DTMF tone signals is included in the remote control unitinstead of the television. In this embodiment, when the viewer pushes abutton on the remote control unit to communicate information such as apurchase command to the central site, the remote control unit directsthe DTMF circuitry to send the DTMF tone signals representing theviewer's command to the cordless telephone base unit. These DTMF tonesignals are then forwarded over the telephone connection to the centralsite. In this embodiment, the television still extracts information fromthe vertical blanking interval of the television signal, but theextracted information is transmitted to the remote control unit forprocessing.

Still other objects and advantages of the present invention will becomereadily apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detaileddescription, wherein is shown and described only the preferredembodiment of the invention, simply by way of illustration of the bestmode contemplated for carrying out the invention. As will be realized,the invention is capable of other and different embodiments, and itsseveral details are capable of modifications in various obviousrespects, all without departing from the invention. Accordingly, thedrawings and description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature,and not as restrictive.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the DTMF Circuit.

FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram of a data transmission system fortelevision signals.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating the main components of theTelevision and Remote Control Unit.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an alternate embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating the high level operational steps ofthe present invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematic of a menu display for a list of service providers.

FIG. 8 is a schematic of a menu display for a list of available itemsfrom a selected service provider.

FIG. 9 is a schematic of a display to inform the viewer of the status ofthe telephone order.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The present invention is a back link system connecting a television,VCR, or other device (hereafter denoted as “television”), heretoforeprimarily designed to only receive information from a central site, to acordless telephone base unit by enabling the television to operatecertain functions of a cordless telephone handset. The present inventionincludes the functionality of the cordless telephone handset in thetelevision, thereby enabling the television to directly initiate atelephone call through the cordless telephone base unit and to sendselected information from a viewer or user via the telephone connectionover the public switched telephone network to a central site.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the present invention. Television 10receives a Television Signal 12 from a signal source. The Television 10could be a standard television, a VCR, or any other device capable oftuning television signals. The Television Signal may be received from anantenna, a cable, a satellite signal, or any other transmission mediumfor television signals. The Television 10 includes a Dual-ToneMultifrequency (DTMF) Circuit 14.

The DTMF Circuit 14 is similar to the corresponding portion of a wellknown cordless telephone handset. However, the DTMF Circuit does notinclude such typical handset features as a microphone, loudspeaker,ringer speaker, volume control, on/off switch, hold key, mute key, pushbutton keypad, and rechargeable battery, because the DTMF Circuit doesnot directly interact with a user of the telephone. Hence, themanufacturing cost of the DTMF Circuit can be kept quite low incomparison to the typical cordless telephone handset. Note that theprimary purpose of the DTMF Circuit is to transmit DTMF tone signals toa pre-existing Cordless Telephone Base Unit 16. It is not necessary thatthe DTMF circuit transmit voice signals or receive voice or DTMF tonesignals. The pre-existing Cordless Telephone Base Unit 16 may be incommunication with a standard Cordless Telephone Handset 17. The BaseUnit-Handset combination may be used by the television viewer or otheruser to make telephone calls in the normal way. The DTMF tone signalsare used to dial the telephone and to transmit alphanumeric data neededto complete a viewer transaction such as the purchase of a product or aPPV television program.

Note that the present invention uses a pre-existing cordless telephonehaving a base unit and a handset to form a two-way transmission linkwith a television. The Cordless Telephone Base Unit 16 performs not onlyits conventional function of a transmission link between the publicswitched telephone network and the Cordless Telephone Handset 17, butalso a transmission link between the public switched telephone networkand the Television 10. In other words, the Cordless Telephone Base Unitperforms two functions.

The DTMF system uses internationally standardized combinations offrequencies. Alphanumeric characters are encoded in the form of twopairs of tones for transmission via the telephone lines. In conventionalDTMF signaling, the numbers and symbols present on a telephone keypadare each transmitted as a dual-frequency tone. For example, the number“1” is represented by a tone comprised of the frequencies 697 Hz and1209 Hz, and the star symbol “*” is represented by a tone at thefrequencies 852 Hz and 1477 Hz. A total of seven different frequenciesare utilized in pairs to transmit the ten numbers and two symbols on aconventional telephone keypad. In some systems, four additionalcharacters are provided. Table I is a matrix showing the high and lowfrequency pairs, in Hz, required for each of the 16 possible characters.Each character is represented by a dual set of audio frequency signals,which when transmitted together are recognized as the uniquerepresentation of the character.

TABLE 1 Lower Higher Higher Higher Higher Frequency Frequency FrequencyFrequency Frequency (Hz) 1209 1336 1446 1633 697 1 2 3 A 770 4 5 6 B 8527 8 9 C 941 * 0 # D

To transmit alphabetic characters over the telephone lines as well asthe conventional numbers and symbols, the seven standard frequencies 697Hz, 770 Hz, 852 Hz, 941 Hz, 1209 Hz, 1336 Hz, and 1447 Hz are used, andan eighth frequency, normally unused, is also employed. The eighthfrequency has a value of 1633 Hz. The additional frequency is used onlyfor transmission of characters that are not typically transmitted viaDTMF signaling. To indicate the transmission of an alphabetic character,the first tone in a pair of tones which identify the letter includes theeighth frequency as a component thereof. Each letter is comprised of afirst tone which includes the eighth frequency in combination with oneof the seven conventionally employed frequencies, followed by a secondtone comprised of any two of the eight available frequencies. Similarly,other non-conventional characters, such as punctuation and spaces, aretransmitted by generating a unique pair of dual-frequency tones.

The DTMF Circuit may be enhanced to also provide DTMF receptioncapabilities, however, voice reception is not needed. With this feature,it can be determined whether a dial tone is available on the telephoneline, that the line is not busy, or that confirmation data concerning atransaction is received.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the DTMF Circuit 14. An IsolationCircuit 100 is provided which is connected to Antenna 102 and which isconnected through Line 104 to the output of a Transmitter Section 106and also through Line 108 to the input of an optional Receiver Section110. A voltage supply input of the Receiver Section 110 is connectedthrough Line 112 to Control and Switching Circuitry 114, which isconnected to Microprocessor 116 to control operation of the ReceiverSection 110. The output of the Receiver Section 110 is connected to Line118, which is connected to an input of 1633 Hz Detector 120. The outputof 1633 Hz Detector 120 is applied through Line 122 to Control andSwitching Circuitry 114. A control input to the 1633 Hz Detector 120 isconnected through Line 124 to an output of the Microprocessor 116, whichis also connected to Control and Switching Circuitry 114. Microprocessor116 includes a tone generator which may be a standard type of DTMFintegrated circuit. When a 1633 Hz signal is produced at the output ofthe Receiver Section 110 and detected by 1633 Hz Detector 120, theMicroprocessor 116 operates to engage communications with Television 10over Line 126. DTMF tones received by Receiver Section 110 are appliedthrough Line 112 to Control and Switching Circuitry 114, wherein theDTMF tone signals are converted to digital signals. The digital signalsare sent thereafter to Microprocessor 116 for eventual transmission toTelevision 10 over Line 126.

To transmit DTMF tone signals from the DTMF Circuit 14 to the CordlessTelephone Base Unit 16, a Summing Amplifier 128 is provided which has anoutput connected through Line 130 to Transmitter Section 106 tofrequency modulate the output of the Transmitter Section. Control inputsof the Transmitter Section 106 are connected through Line 132 to theControl and Switching Circuitry 114. The Microprocessor receives digitalsignals for transmission over Line 134 from the Television 10. TheMicroprocessor operates to apply a 83 Hz square wave signal through Line136 to 83 Hz Filter 138, which is connected through Line 140 to an inputof Summing Amplifier 128. The output of the Transmitter Section is thenmodulated to send out a substantially sinusoidal 83 Hz burst whichsignals the Cordless Telephone Base Unit 16.

After a 83 Hz burst is sent, the Microprocessor 116 develops a 98 Hzcoded signal on Line 142 which is applied as a second input of theSumming Amplifier 128. The coded signal is detected by the CordlessTelephone Base Unit and, if properly received, the Cordless TelephoneBase Unit develops a 1633 Hz “handshake” signal which is transmittedback to the DTMF Circuit to be detected by 1633 Hz Detector 120. Thenthe Microprocessor 116 operates to develop a 98 Hz coded null signal onLine 142 for transmission by the Transmitter Section 106. If the nullsignal is properly detected by the Cordless Telephone Base Unit, thetransmission of the 1633 Hz “handshake” signal is terminated and theMicroprocessor responds to the termination of the “handshake” signal bydeveloping another coded signal on Line 142 for transmission, thesequence being repeated until communications are deemed to beeffectively established. Power for the DTMF Circuit is supplied by theTelevision 10 over Line 144. Clock circuitry of the Microprocessor 116is connected to a Crystal 146 through a Resistor 148 to power Line 144.

The Cordless Telephone Base Unit 16 then operates to connect to anoutside telephone line and to allow transmission of a dial tone back tothe DTMF Circuit 14. The DTMF tone signals for the telephone number tobe dialed are then transmitted from the Microprocessor 116 to theCordless Telephone Base Unit 16 and the Cordless Telephone Base Unitestablishes the telephone connection. DTMF tone signals representingviewer transaction information may now be sent from the Television 10 tothe Central Site 22 through the Cordless Telephone Base Unit 16 andTelephone Line 20.

In an alternate embodiment, the DTMF Circuit could be set up to becompatible with a viewer's existing cordless telephone base unit. Somecordless telephones include digital code security to prevent otherhandsets from communicating with the base unit. The handset and baseunit of the cordless phone share a digital code. The DTMF Circuit 14could be set up to receive and use this code (using learning remote orstored setup data methods) much like universal infrared remotecontrollers. Alternatively, it is foreseen that cordless telephonemanufacturers may include a code that when received by the CordlessTelephone Base Unit 16, would disable this security feature.Accordingly, the DTMF Circuit could be set up to transmit the disablecode specific to the Cordless Telephone Base Unit, again using learningremote or stored setup data methods.

Referring back to FIG. 1, DTMF Circuit 14 and Cordless Telephone BaseUnit 16 communicate over a plurality of communication channels via radiofrequency (RF) link 18. Hence, the DTMF Transmitter and the CordlessTelephone Base Unit each include an antenna (not shown in FIG. 1) fortransmission and reception of RF signals. Full duplex communicationbetween the Cordless Telephone Base Unit 16 and the DTMF Circuit 14 isobtained by frequency modulation and demodulation of signals onFCC-designated channels. The RF link may be implemented as a 900 MHzDigital Spread Spectrum communication path, as is provided, for example,by the circuitry contained in the model CLT-926 cordless telephonecommercially available from Sanyo Consumer Electronics. Spread spectrumis a modulation technique in which the information content of amodulated wave form is spread over a wider bandwidth than that of theoriginal information signal. A spread spectrum system takes an inputsignal, mixes it with FM noise and “spreads” the signal over a broadfrequency range, hopping from frequency to frequency at split-secondintervals. The spread signal has a greater bandwidth than the originalmessage and is less likely to interfere with other signals.

A general overview of spread spectrum technology is provided by R. C.Dixon, Spread Spectrum Systems, published by John Wiley & Sons, NewYork, N.Y., 1984. One type of spread spectrum modulation is frequencyhopping. According to Dixon, a frequency hopping system or “frequencyhopper” consists of a code generator and a frequency synthesizer capableof responding to the coded output from the code generator. Also,according to Dixon, “frequency hopping” modulation is more accuratelytermed “multiple-frequency, code-selected, frequency shift keying.” Itis simply frequency shift keying (FSK) except that the set of frequencychoices is greatly expanded. Simple FSK most often uses only twofrequencies; for example, F1 is sent to signify a “mark,” F2 to signifya “space.” Frequency hoppers, on the other hand, often have thousands offrequencies available. The number of frequency choices and the rate ofhopping from frequency to frequency in any frequency hopper is governedby the requirements placed on it for a particular use. Cordlesstelephone sets designed to operate in a frequency hopping system are nowwidely available from manufacturers such as Lucent Technologies,Motorola, Sharp, and others.

By using digital spread spectrum communications, RF link 18 exhibitssuperior noise immunity, longer operating range, automatic best channelselection, and superior security against eavesdropping. However, RF Link18 may also be implemented by cordless telephone circuitry operatingover a selected one of 10 channels allocated in the 46-50 MHzFCC-allocated frequency band.

Instead of being integral with the Television 10, the DTMF Circuit 14could also be a stand-alone unit, i.e. a “set top box”, which isdirectly connected into a telephone jack of a DSS or into a digitalcable box.

The Cordless Telephone Base Unit 16 may or may not be located in thesame room as the Television 10 and DTMF Circuit 14. For effectiveoperation, the distance between the Cordless Telephone Base Unit and theDTMF Circuit may extend up to several hundred feet, which is more thanadequate for residential applications. The Cordless Telephone Base Unit16 is arranged to be connected to at least one telephone line and alsoto a 120-volt alternating current (AC) line cord (not shown) forplugging into a standard electrical outlet. Alternatively, theconnection to the public switched telephone network can be via acellular network. The Cordless Telephone Base Unit 16 may include one ormore control and signaling buttons (not shown). An exemplary embodimentof the Cordless Telephone Base Unit is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,706,274,issued to Baker et al., entitled “Cordless Telephone System” andincorporated herein by reference. The Cordless Telephone Base Unit mayinclude such features as a built-in speaker, microphone, line selectbutton, hold button, intercom call switch, answer button, volume controlknob, and various lights to indicate such events as power availability,incoming calls and hold status. The Cordless Telephone Base Unit wouldnot necessarily have to include a receptacle for a cordless telephonehandset because portions of the typical telephone handset are integralwith the Television 10; thus there may be no need for such a receptacle.For similar reasons, the Cordless Telephone Base Unit would not have toinclude a portable handset battery recharger. However, pre-existingCordless Telephone Base Unit 16 could be employed without modificationwith pre-existing Cordless Telephone Handset 17 to make telephone callsin the usual way. In other words, Cordless Telephone Base Unit 16 canperform dual functions—serve as a standard telephone for two way voicetransmission and serve as a data transmission link from a television toa telephone network.

The Cordless Telephone Base Unit 16 could also be used as an answeringtelephone completely independent of the DTMF Circuit 14. To receive acall at the Cordless Telephone Base Unit, an answer button (not shown)is pressed and the Cordless Telephone Base Unit operates as aconventional “speaker phone.”

The Cordless Telephone Base Unit 16 is coupled via public switchedtelephone network 20 with Central Site 22. The Central Site includescomponents to answer the incoming telephone call, receive thetransaction data from the Cordless Telephone Base Unit, implement thetransaction, and send confirmation data back to the Television. TheCentral Site represents the centrally located PPV program provider,cable company, or broadcast television station or network. Typically,the Central Site will include a well known general purpose computersystem and associated circuitry for performing the above functions.

The Cordless Telephone Base Unit 16 can also communicate with othertelephones such as Party 21 through the public switched telephonenetwork 20.

In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, PPV or homeshopping control information is embedded in the television signal at theCentral Site 22 or other location and extracted from the TelevisionSignal 12 by the Television 10 (the extraction and control capabilitymay also be included in a VCR or other appliance). One method ofembedding the information into the television signal is to embed theinformation in the vertical blanking intervals (VBIs) of the TelevisionSignal. The vertical blanking intervals can contain closed caption datafor the hearing impaired and extended data services (EDS) data.

Video images in a cathode ray tube (CRT) video device, e.g. television,are generated by scanning a beam along a predefined pattern of linesacross a screen. Each time all of the lines are scanned, a frame is saidto have been produced. In the National Television Standards Committee(NTSC) implementation, such as is used in the United States, a frame isscanned 30 times per second. Each television frame comprises 525 lineswhich are divided into two separate fields, referred to as field 1 (“oddfield”) and field 2 (“even field”), of 262.5 lines each. Accordingly,these even and odd fields are transmitted alternately at 60 Hz. Thelines of the even and odd fields are interleaved to produce the full 525line frame once every {fraction (1/30)} of a second in a process knownas interlacing. Another standard in the world uses 625 lines ofinformation and interlace 312 and 313 lines at 50 fields per second. Inthe 525 line NTSC standard used in the United States, approximately 480lines are displayed on the television screen.

The interlacing scanning pattern of a conventional television receiverincludes scanning the CRT beams from the top left corner horizontallyacross the screen. After the first, topmost line is scanned, the beamreturns to the left side during a period of time known as the horizontalblanking interval and repeats scanning along another line which isparallel to but lower than the previous line. The scanning continuesalong the lines until the beam reaches the center of the bottom part ofthe screen to complete field 1.

From the bottom of the screen, the beam returns to the top where itstarts scanning from substantially the center of the screen along thelines for field 2 which interlace the lines of field 1. This is not aninstantaneous bottom to top jump but actually requires the length oftime to scan 21 horizontal lines. These lines are lines 1 through 21 offield 2. The second half of line 21, field 2 is displayed. Then lines285 to 525 of fields 2 are scanned to complete field 2. When the beamreaches the bottom right corner of the screen, the picture frame isformed. The beam then retraces to the top.

During the time in which the beam returns from the bottom to the top ofthe screen between the fields, it carries no video or picture signalsbecause it does not produce any picture element on the screen. This timeinterval is generally known as the vertical blanking interval (VBI). Itsduration is typically 21 times the time duration that it takes the beamto scan across the screen. Apparatus and methods using the NTSC standardwith 21 lines in each VBI are well known in the art and therefore arenot discussed in further detail herein.

Because no image is produced on the display during the VBI, no pictureinformation needs to be carried by the television broadcast signals.Thus, the VBI is used for conveying auxiliary information from atelevision network or station to viewers. For example, closed captiondata associated with the television program are transmitted as encodedcomposite data signals in VBI line 21, field 1 of the standard NTSCvideo signal. Lines 1 through 9 of the VBI of each field are used forvertical synchronization and post equalizing pulses. Hence, lines 10through 21 are available for carrying auxiliary information.

FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram of a data transmission system fortelevision signals. As used herein, the terms “broadcast” and “transmit”are used interchangeably for the transmission of signals over cable orfiber optics, to or from satellites, over the air, and the like. Thedata transmission system is the source for the Television Signal 12received by the Television 10 of FIG. 1. A Network Head End 160transmits a composite television signal containing inserted informationin a portion thereof, typically the vertical blanking interval, to aSatellite 162 which rebroadcasts the same to a local Affiliate 164. TheAffiliate 164 may further insert data into the VBI of the receivedtelevision signal and transmit the same to a local Cable Head End 166.The Cable Head End 166 receives television signals from a plurality ofsources (including satellites) and may further insert data into the VBIof any of the television signals. The signals from the plurality ofsources are combined into a composite television signal, amplified, andprovided over a cable to a plurality of individual Receivers 168. In thepreferred embodiment, Television 10 from FIG. 1 is an example of aReceiver 168, however, Receivers can include cable boxes, VCRs, andsatellite receivers as well as televisions. In addition, the individualReceivers 168 may receive signals directly from local Affiliate 164 byair, which may include the use of a Satellite 162, or by cable.

More specifically, the Network Head End 160 has a video tape recorder(VTR) 170 for providing a program signal to an Inserter 172. AController 174, also at the head end controls the scheduling of loadingtapes from a cart (e.g., a machine with a plurality of video tapecassettes which are moved by a robotic arm from a storage location andinserted into a VTR and vice versa). Furthermore, the Controller 174controls the lighting of stages during live television broadcasts, suchas news broadcasts. The Controller 174 is typically amicroprocessor-based system. A Traffic Computer 176 controls the exacttiming of playing individual segments of video tapes and insertingcommercials therebetween as well as switching between differentprograms. Some Network Head Ends 160 have both a Traffic Computer 176and a Controller 174.

The Controller 174 provides data and commands to the Inserter 172. TheTraffic Computer 176 provides data and commands to the Controller, ifpresent. Otherwise, the Traffic Computer provides these signals directlyto the Inserter 172. The Inserter 172 inserts data into the VBI of thecomposite television signal and provides the television signal to aTransmitter 178, which in turn provides the television signal on amicrowave carrier to Satellite Dish 180 for transmission to Satellite162.

The Satellite 162 retransmits the received signal, which is received bya Satellite Dish 182 at the Affiliate 164. The Satellite Dish 182provides the signal to a Station Inserter 184 at the local Affiliate164. The Affiliate may also insert data into the composite televisionsignal. The television signal is then provided to a Transmitter 186 andthen to a Transmitting Antenna 188.

A local Cable Head End 166 has a plurality of Satellite Dishes 190 andAntennas 192 for receiving signals from a plurality of Network Head Ends160 and Affiliates 164. The received signal from each of the SatelliteDishes and Antennas is provided to respective inputs of Multi-channelInserter 194, which can also insert data into the VBI of a receivedsignal. The multi-channel output from the Inserter 194 is amplified inAmplifier 196 and provided over a Cable 197 to individual Receivers 168.Alternatively, the Receivers 168 could receive the broadcast informationvia antennas or satellite receivers.

Note that the Central Site 22 of FIG. 1 may be located at the NetworkHead End 160, Affiliate 164, or Cable Head End 166 and be integral withthe components depicted in FIG. 3 as Network Head End, Affiliate, andCable Head End, respectively. Alternatively, the Central Site 22 islocated at a location different than the Network Head End, Affiliate, orCable Head End. In either case, the operator of the Central Site 22provides information regarding PPV events and home shopping products tobe inserted into the VBI of the television signal during broadcast ofrelated advertising segments.

Caption data decoding used in the data transmission system is furtherdescribed in the following specifications, which are hereby incorporatedby reference herein: Title 47, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Part15, as amended by GEN. Docket No. 91-1; FCC 91-119; “CLOSED CAPTIONDECODER REQUIREMENTS FOR THE TELEVISION RECEIVERS”; Title 47, CFR Part73.682(a)(22), Caption Transmission format; Title 47, CFR Part 73.699,FIG. 6; “TELEVISION SYNCHRONIZING WAVE FORM”; Title 47 CFR Part 73.699,FIG. 17a; “LINE 21, FIELD 1 DATA SIGNAL FORMAT”; and PBS EngineeringReport No. E-7709-C, “TELEVISION CAPTIONING FOR THE DEAF: SIGNAL ANDDISPLAY SPECIFICATIONS.”

The extended data services is further described in the RecommendedPractice for Line 21 Data Service, Electronics Industries Association,EIA-608 (drafts Oct. 12, 1992 and Jun. 17, 1993), the subject matter ofwhich is hereby incorporated by reference. Under this standard,additional data is provided in line 21, field 2 of the vertical blankinginterval. This additional data includes two closed captioning fields,two text mode fields and the extended data services. The extended dataincludes, among other information, program name, program length, lengthinto show, channel number, network affiliation, station call letters,universal coordinated time (UCT), time zone, and daylight savings timeusage. Upstream at the Network Head End 160, the network inserts theprogram name, the length of the show, the length into the show, thenetwork affiliation, and the UCT. Downstream at the Affiliate 164, theAffiliate inserts the channel number, the time zone, the daylightsavings time usage and program names. The Network Head End inserts thedata that does not differ for the different Affiliates. PPV event andhome shopping product data may be inserted by either the Network HeadEnd 160, the Affiliate 164, or the local Cable Head End 166.

The data may be manually entered from a local Terminal 198. The Terminal198 may be used to build, recall, or edit information to be used asinsertion data. The Terminal 198 typically includes a computer. Inaddition, Modem 199 may be used to provide data to Inserter 172. Thedata may be provided manually or automatically from remote sites, suchas the Central Site 22. The output of the Inserter 172 is a compositetelevision signal including the PPV event and home shopping data.

Referring back to FIG. 1, the viewer uses Remote Control Unit 24 to sendcommands to the Television 10 over an infrared link 26. Remote ControlUnit 24 includes BUY button 28 which is pushed by the viewer to initiatea purchase transaction. Television 10 receives the BUY command andcommunicates the request to the DTMF Circuit 14.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating the main components of theTelevision 10 and Remote Control Unit 24. Television 10 is capable ofdecoding the vertical blanking interval lines and using the embeddedinformation to support PPV and home shopping applications. TheTelevision has a Tuner 200 which receives the Television Signal 12 fromeither an antenna, a cable box, a satellite receiver, or other signaltransmission medium. A VBI Decoder 202 is coupled to the output of theTuner 200. A Microprocessor 204, which implements the Television controllogic, receives the output of the VBI Decoder 202. The Microprocessorcontrols the output of the Television Signal 12 to Monitor 206 forviewing by a viewer. The Microprocessor 204 also communicates with theDTMF Circuit via output Line 134 and input Line 126. The Microprocessorexecutes programming instructions to support PPV, home shopping, andother applications. Infrared Receiver “R” 208 receives commands and datafrom Remote Control Unit 24, which are then forwarded to Microprocessor204 for processing.

Remote Control Unit 24 includes an Infrared Transmitter “T” 210 to sendcommands and data to Infrared Receiver 208. Microprocessor 212 controlsthe operation of the Remote Control Unit by accepting input data fromKeypad 214, displaying output data on Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) 216,and sending commands and data to the Infrared Transmitter 210 fortransmission to the Television 10. Included in the Keypad 214 are keysfor selecting specific functions relating to PPV or home shoppingapplications, such as a “BUY” key, or keys indicating PPV programs ortelevision channels.

In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, program-relatedinformation that is embedded in the vertical blanking interval lines ofthe Television Signal 12 includes a telephone number related to theinformation that is being broadcast. The telephone number in theprogram-related information is extracted from the Television Signal bythe VBI Decoder 202 and sent to the DTMF Circuit 14 by theMicroprocessor 204 for initiating a telephone connection.

Note that the difference between the present invention and the conceptwherein a remote control unit is also a telephone is the synchronizationand organization of data in the Television 10, which itself may besimultaneously receiving data from the Television Signal 12. Thissynchronization of data allows the viewer to respond to certain storedor time-sensitive information displayed on the Television (supplied tothe Television in either digital or analog form) by pressing keys on theRemote Control Unit 24. The Television 10 then combines the receivedcommand information with PPV program or product identification data andtelephone numbers for transmission to the Cordless Telephone Base Unit16 for forwarding to the Central Site 22 for processing.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an alternate embodiment of the presentinvention. In this embodiment, the DTMF Circuit 14 resides in the RemoteControl Unit 24 instead of the Television 10. Two-way communication isnow needed between the Television 10 and the Remote Control Unit 24 sothat decoded VBI data (such as telephone number and product information)can be forwarded to the Remote Control Unit 24 for processing by theMicroprocessor in the Remote Control Unit. In this instance, it isimportant to identify what PPV program the viewer is purchasing.Separate keys (not shown) can be included in the Remote Control Unit 24which are labeled with names of PPV programs or services (such as HBO,SHOWTIME, ESPN, etc.). In order to select a PPV program, the viewerpresses the key representing a particular service, followed by the BUYkey 28. As in FIG. 1, the DTMF Circuit 14 may also include thecapability for receiving data. However, since no voice transmission orreception is needed, the circuitry required to implement DTMFtransmission and receptions is smaller and simpler than in conventionalcordless telephone handsets.

FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating the high level operational steps ofthe present invention. After Start Step 300, the Television 10 receivesdata regarding an advertising segment in the vertical blanking intervallines of the Television Signal 12 at Step 302. For example, theadvertising segment could contain a preview of an upcoming PPV event orproduct for sale in a home shopping situation. The embedded dataincludes a program or product identifier, and the telephone number ofthe PPV service provider or seller. The advertising segment contains theprice of the PPV event or product so the viewer can make an informeddecision on whether to purchase the product or the right to view theadvertised PPV event. The viewer sees the advertising segment displayedon the Television at Step 304, and is prompted, either audibly orvisually, to respond. If the viewer decides to buy, at Step 306 theviewer pushes the BUY button 28 on the viewer's Remote Control Unit 24.Next, at Step 308, the Remote Control Unit 24 sends a signal viaInfrared Transmitter 210 to the Infrared Receiver 208 located in theTelevision 10. The signal includes the unique code for the BUY button,thereby instructing the Microprocessor 204 in the Television that theviewer wants to buy the currently advertised PPV event or product.

At Step 310, the Microprocessor 204 combines the received BUY commandwith identification information of the viewer (which is stored in memoryresident in the Microprocessor 204 during initialization of theTelevision 10) and the embedded advertising data discussed above. Theviewer identification information may include the viewer's credit cardinformation for payment and billing purposes. At Step 312, the CordlessTelephone Base Unit 16 initiates the telephone call, connecting to theCentral Site identified by the telephone number passed to CordlessTelephone Base Unit by the DTMF Circuit 14. The Microprocessor 204 ofthe Television 10 then sends the BUY command to the Cordless TelephoneBase Unit 16 via DTMF Circuit 14 at Step 313. After the connection isestablished, the BUY command information is transferred to the CentralSite at Step 314. At Step 316, the Central Site processes the BUYcommand and sends a confirmation message back to the Cordless TelephoneBase Unit 16. Processing of the BUY command could include enabling theviewer to receive access to the scheduled PPV event or accepting anorder for an advertised product. The Cordless Telephone Base Unit atStep 318 relays the confirmation message to the Television via the DTMFCircuit 14 and the Microprocessor 204. Next, at Step 320, theMicroprocessor 204 of the Television 10 stores part or all of theconfirmation message and displays part or all of the confirmationmessage on the Monitor 206. The viewer thus gets immediate feedback thatthe viewer's order for the event or product has been accepted. Theconfirmation message could also include information related to the PPVevent or product such as the planned delivery date of the product. TheTelevision then concludes the telephone call at Step 322 and processingends at End Step 324.

In another preferred embodiment of the invention, the viewer may order aprogram or product which is not currently being advertised by accessinga series of menus. The Microprocessor 204 includes a Memory 205 (FIG. 4)for storing a telephone directory which includes a list of names forservice providers, e.g., PPV program providers and home shoppingchannels, and a telephone number corresponding to each service provider.The Microprocessor 204 may also store in the Memory 205 additionalviewer identification information such as the viewer's account numberfor a particular service provider.

Information regarding the service providers, including their names andassociated telephone numbers, are transmitted by the Central Site 22 inthe VBI and received by the Microprocessor 204. The Microprocessorcreates a list of available service providers as they are received andassigns each service provider a Provider Reference Number 400 which isstored in the Memory 205. The service provider information may betransmitted by the cable company or by the individual service providers.The telephone directory may expand over time as information for newservice providers are received by the Microprocessor.

The Microprocessor 204 displays the list of service provider names withthe associated Provider Reference Number in a Main Menu 402, as shown inFIG. 7, in response to the viewer pushing a MENU button provided onKeypad 214.

The Central Site 22 also transmits in the VBI a list of available itemscurrently being offered by each service provider. Each item isidentified by an associated Item Reference Number 404. Once in the MainMenu 402 and in response to the viewer pushing a number identifying oneof the listed service providers, the Microprocessor displays on theTelevision 10 a Catalog Display 406 which includes a list of itemsavailable from that particular service provider and the correspondingItem Reference Number for each item, as shown in FIG. 8.

The viewer selects an item by pressing a button on the Keypad 214corresponding to the Item Reference Number 404 for that item.Consequently, the Microprocessor 204 performs the steps 310 to End Step324, illustrated in FIG. 6, but processes the Item Reference Number andstored service provider information rather than the BUY command andembedded advertising information to form a purchase command.

For example, if the viewer pushes the “1” button on the Keypad 214 whilethe Main Menu of FIG. 7 is displayed, the Microprocessor 204 willdisplay the catalog of FIG. 8 on the Television 10. If the viewer thenpresses the “2” button, the Microprocessor will initiate the steps forordering the PPV program “Blade Runner.”

In an alternate preferred embodiment, the Microprocessor controls theDTMF Circuit to initiate a telephone call to a service providerimmediately after it is selected from the Main Menu, but before an itemis selected. In this manner, the time required to connect to the CentralSite 22 after the order is placed is reduced.

In a further alternate preferred embodiment, the step of displaying andselecting a service provider from the Main Menu 402 can be eliminatedfrom the purchasing sequence. According to this embodiment, theMicroprocessor 204 displays the Catalog Display 406 for a particularservice provider in response to the viewer pushing a LIST button on theKeypad 214 while the Television 10 is tuned to that service provider'sbroadcast, e.g., a home shopping channel program or an advertisement fora PPV program provider. In response to the viewer selecting an item, theMicroprocessor combines the Item Reference Number with the serviceprovider information embedded in the VBI and the stored vieweridentification information to form a purchase command.

Many telephone lines include a call waiting feature which may interferewith the connection between the Central Site 22 and the CordlessTelephone Base Unit if a telephone call is incoming during theconnection. According to further embodiment of the invention, the DTMFCircuit may be provided with the capability to identify an incomingcall, and in cooperation with the Microprocessor, automaticallydisconnect from the Central Site 22 and reconnect when the line is notbusy, thereby allowing the incoming call to be received by the CordlessTelephone Base Unit. Alternatively, the Microprocessor 204 maydeactivate the call waiting feature by instructing the DTMF Circuit totransmit the appropriate call waiting disable code, such as “*70,” whentransmitting the tone signals to the Cordless Telephone Base Unit at theinitiation of each telephone call to the Central Site 22. Preferably,the Microprocessor 204 displays prompts for the viewer during theinitial setup of the Television 10 to enable a selected one of thesealternatives.

In yet another embodiment, the Microprocessor 204 displays a StatusDisplay 408 on the Television 10 while the Cordless Telephone Base Unitis connected to the Central Site 22 to inform the viewer of the statusof the telephone connection and purchase order, as shown in FIG. 9.Preferably, the Status Display includes a Message 410 identifying thestatus of the connection, such as “Dialing”, “Connecting”, “OrderConfirmed”, or “Incoming Call”, as well as a Graphical Representation412 of the status of the telephone order.

The invention has been described in its presently contemplated bestmode, and it is clear that it is susceptible to various modifications,modes of operation and embodiments, all within the ability and skill ofthose skilled in the art and without the exercise of further inventiveactivity. Accordingly, what is intended to be protected by LettersPatent is set forth in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A two-way transmission system between a datacenter and a plurality of television receivers, the system comprising: acordless telephone near each television receiver; means for transmittinginformation related to a product being advertised on televisionincluding a telephone number via vertical blanking interval (VBI) of atelevision signal; means at each television receiver for extracting thetransmitted information related to the product being advertised ontelevision from the VBI of the television signal; a display monitor ateach television receiver for displaying the extracted informationrelated to the product being advertised; means at each televisionreceiver for transmitting and receiving information to and from thecordless telephone; an input device for receiving user information froma user to be communicated to the data center; means for connecting thecordless telephone to a public telephone network; means for sending asignal to the cordless phone to initiate a call to the data centerutilizing the telephone number; means for connecting the data center tothe telephone network for receiving the user information from thecordless telephone responsive to the extracted information related to aproduct being advertised; and means for receiving a confirmation messagefrom the data center and displaying at least a portion of the receivedconfirmation message on the display monitor.
 2. A two-way informationtransmission method between a data center and a television receiver, themethod comprising the steps of: locating near the television receiver acordless telephone; transmitting information related to a product beingadvertised on television including a telephone number via verticalblanking interval (VBI) of a television signal; extracting theinformation related to the product being advertised on television fromthe VBI of the television signal; displaying the extracted informationrelated to the product being advertised on a display monitor; receivinguser data from a user to be communicated to the data center responsiveto the extracted information related to a product being advertised;sending a signal to the cordless phone to initiate a call to the datacenter utilizing the telephone number; accessing a public telephonenetwork through the cordless telephone; transmitting the user data fromthe television receiver to the cordless telephone utilizing atransmitter connected to the television receiver and compatible with thecordless telephone unit; transmitting the user data from the cordlesstelephone to the data center via the telephone network; and receiving aconfirmation message from the data center and displaying at least aportion of the received confirmation message on the display monitor. 3.A back link from a television receiver to a central data processingcenter comprising: a cordless telephone capable of transmitting andreceiving data; means for connecting the cordless telephone to a publictelephone network; a wireless transmitter for transmitting data to thetelephone for carriage by the telephone network to the data processingcenter; a microprocessor electrically coupled to the television receiverfor controlling the operation of the television receiver andelectrically coupled to the transmitter for generating the transmittingdata; a data extractor for extracting information related to a productbeing advertised on television including a telephone number fromvertical blanking interval (VBI) of a television signal; a displaymonitor at each television receiver for displaying the extractedinformation related to the product being advertised; an input devicecoupled to the microprocessor for accepting input data from the user anddirecting the microprocessor to generate user data responsive to theextracted information related to a product being advertised to be sentby the transmitter to the telephone for carriage by the telephonenetwork to the data processing center utilizing the telephone numberextracted from the VBI of the television signal; and means for receivinga confirmation message from the data center and displaying at least aportion of the received confirmation message on the display monitor. 4.The transmission system of claim 1, further comprising means forprompting the user on the display monitor to respond to the displayedinformation related to the product being advertised.
 5. The transmissionsystem of claim 1, further comprising means for combining identificationinformation about the user stored in a memory at a respective televisionreceiver with the user information input from input device and means fortransmitting the combined information to the data center via thecordless telephone.
 6. The method of claim 2, further comprisingprompting the user on the display monitor to respond to the displayedinformation related to the product being advertised.
 7. The method ofclaim 2, further comprising combining identification information aboutthe user stored in a memory at a respective television receiver with theuser information input from input device and transmitting the combinedinformation to the data center via the cordless telephone.
 8. The backlink of claim 3, further comprising means for prompting the user on thedisplay monitor to respond to the displayed information related to theproduct being advertised.
 9. The back link of claim 3, furthercomprising means for combining identification information about the userstored in a memory at a respective television receiver with the userinformation input from input device and means for transmitting thecombined information to the data center via the cordless telephone.